Longhorns at Trials

by SwimTexas on Jul 2, 2008 10:46 PM CDT

This is just simply amazing. I know, by and large, the average reader of this site is not as big a swimming fan as I am, even when they do have longhorns on their caps, but you just have to appreciate the massivenes of the squad the University of Texas is sending to the Olympic Trials this year.

Several of the guys have qualified already. There are also a couple who will qualify, but have not been officially named part of the team yet because of procedure.

I was about 12 years old the first time I recall seeing the Olympic Trials qualifying time in my best event, and I spent the next 10 years of my life training with that as my dream goal..... just to qualify! It is incredibly special and 35 is just an amazing number.

Anyway, if you get a chance, check out the trials and root for our boys.... and more than a few girls too!

See ya BON!

Mens Article - http://www.texassports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=20&url_article_id=9179&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2

UT SWIMMERS COMPETING AT THE U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS
Former
Brendan Hansen - Qualified
Matt Lowe
Agustin Magruder
Matt McGinnis
Garrett Weber-Gale
Neil Walker
Aaron Peirsol - Qualified and set WORLD RECORD!
Daniel Rohleder
Caleb McDermott
Ian Crocker
Chris Seitz
Josh Davis
Jeremy Harris

Current
Michael Klueh
Sean Patton
Bryan Collins
Jim Robertson
Dave Walters
Ricky Berens - Qualified
Ryan Verlatti
Peter Jameson
Scott Trompeter
Scott Jostes
Hill Taylor
Alan Maher
Matt Donch
Jonathan Jackson
Brian Wilson
Ben Van Roekel

Future
Jackson Wilcox
Scott Spann, Jr.
Eric Friedland
Neil Caskey
Hayes Johnson
Jimmy Feigen

Women's Article - http://www.texassports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=49&url_article_id=9177&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2

Elizabeth Tinnon, Tanica Jamison, Katie Robinson, Macie Garrett, Lindsay Voyles, Traci Van Matre, Alex Basso, Brie Powers, Alexi Spann, Kathleen Hersey, Katie Riefenstahl, Leah Gingrich , Karlee Bispo

All comments, FanPosts, and FanShots are the views of the reader-authors who create them.

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Comments

Thanks for posting this update, I had been

curious as to how many Horns are going to make the team.

by the1austin on Jul 2, 2008 11:29 PM CDT 0 recs

Texas swimming...

I grew up in Austin and knew Bruce Clotworthy (UT coach who won a couple of National titles)... Texas has always had a great international presence in the swimming world and has produced some great swimmers. Thanks for the update.

1 Peter 2:17

by HornsFan87 on Jul 3, 2008 10:10 AM CDT 0 recs

Garrett Weber-Gale

Didn’t GW-G just set a world or American record in the 100 Free or something? I remember seeing that a couple days ago, but I can’t remember if it was in the prelims or another round.

by BigTexBD on Jul 3, 2008 12:15 PM CDT 0 recs

Yes, but it was broken again

Jason Lezak broke the record in his heat yesterday morning. Weber-Gale then broke Lezak’s record in his heat. But in the semis, Lezak broke it again. Weber-Gale will get another shot at it in the finals today when he swims for a spot on the Olympic team.

Brendan Hansen could also break the world record in the 200 breast tonight, and another incoming Longhorn (Scott Spann) and a member of Longhorn Aquatics (Eric Shanteau) will be swimming in that event with Hansen.

Another event to keep an eye on is the women’s 200 fly. Incoming UT freshman Kathleen Hersey has a good shot at making the team in this event.

For those of you who might be interested in watching, tonight’s events will be televised on USA at 7:00 PM. The rest of the trials will be on NBC throughout the weekend.

by bassale47 on Jul 3, 2008 1:51 PM CDT up 0 recs

Maybe not

Hansen gets upset in the 200 breast finals by incoming UT freshman Scott Spann and fellow Longhorn Aquatics teammate Eric Shanteau. He will still swim the 100 though.

by bassale47 on Jul 3, 2008 7:24 PM CDT up 0 recs

Spann is actually a transfer from Michigan

He’ll be a Junior this Fall.

Current and former Horns take 3 of the top 4 spots. Doesn’t that make Texas Breastroke U?

Life is an Occasion. Rise to it.

by patienthornsfan on Jul 6, 2008 1:15 AM CDT up 0 recs

i did my best in college

to make Texas into “Breastroke U.”

What?

by billyzane on Jul 8, 2008 10:11 AM CDT up 0 recs

I was hoping that someone would pick up on that....

Didn’t think it would be you, BZ. Guess HB is too busy studying?

Life is an Occasion. Rise to it.

by patienthornsfan on Jul 9, 2008 7:30 AM CDT up 0 recs

Hersey just made the Olympics, came in second in 200 fly. nt

by whills on Jul 3, 2008 7:49 PM CDT up 0 recs

Peirsol, Weber-Gale

Aaron Peirsol won the 200 back semis and will swim in the finals tomorrow. Weber-Gale won the 100 free finals and makes his first Olympics.

by bassale47 on Jul 3, 2008 7:56 PM CDT 0 recs

Weber-Gale wins the 50 as well

Talk about peaking at the right time! GWG showed a lot of promise and notched several NCAA championships during his career at Texas, but he’s definetly made the leap to world-class swimmer at this meet. And give credit to Eddie Reese, the Augie Garrido of the pool.

I’ll just take a step back this next week and do a couple of different things in the water and do whatever Eddie (Reese) tells me to do. My dad tells me Eddie is the zen master of swimming, and I agree with him.

Ian Crocker also made the team in the 100 fly, finishing second to Phelps. That raises the interesting possibility of having an all-Texas medley relay team in Beijing if world record holder Crocker wins this event at the Olympics. Reese will be under incredible pressure to let Phelps swim the butterfly leg of the race regardless of the result in the individual event, but Crocker will at least swim in the prelims.

Crocker and Peirsol have now made three Olympic teams, while Hansen is on his second. They will be joined in Beijing by Dave Walters, who was added to the team on the 4×200 Free Relay squad.

GWG wins

Day 7 Recap

Life is an Occasion. Rise to it.

by patienthornsfan on Jul 6, 2008 1:47 AM CDT up 0 recs

Final list of Longhorn Olympians (Swimming & T&F)

If I’ve left anyone out, please correct.

Men’s swimming:
Ricky Berens (200 freestyle relay)
Ian Crocker (100 butterfly)
Brendan Hansen (100 breaststroke)
Aaron Peirsol (100 & 200 backstroke)
Scott Spann (200 breaststroke)
Dave Walters (200 freestyle relay)
Garrett Weber-Gale (50 & 100 freestyle)
*Eric Shanteau (not technically a Longhorn but swims for Longhorn Aquatics) (200 breaststroke)

You can also expect pretty much all of these guys to swim relays.

Women’s swimming:
Kathleen Hersey (200 butterfly)

Men’s Track & Field:
Trey Hardee (decathlon)
Andra Manson (high-jump)
Leo Manzano (1500 m)

Women’s Track & Field:
Michelle Carter (shot put)
Marshevet Hooker (200 m)
Sanya Richards (400 m)

Troy Dumais and Laura Wilkinson also qualified in diving, but there are some other UT divers who are trying to qualify at the selection camp, and I haven’t heard anything yet about their status.

by bassale47 on Jul 7, 2008 7:55 AM CDT 0 recs

my gf works at...

..the TSC (Texas Swim Center) where they train, and she says Brendan Hansen, and Michael Phelps are jerks, so I rejoiced when Hansen came in 4th to Scott Spann..it’s called karma..lol

by vy til i die on Jul 7, 2008 1:19 PM CDT up 0 recs

Agree on Phelps

He comes off as a jerk, he’s way too sensitive about comments from his competition, and I think all the media attention he gets does a disservice to the other American swimmers, male and female. If he didn’t swim in 5 individual events, he’d be just another U.S. swimmer. I’m not saying the guy isn’t good. But he’s no better at what he does than Aaron Peirsol is at what he does. It’s just that Peirsol has picked one stroke and stuck with it. Kinda makes you wonder why Phelps scratches every time he’s supposed to race Peirsol.

As for Hansen, this is the first I’ve ever heard of someone not liking him. All of the other swimmers love the guy. The Japanese reporters who are attached to him at the hip love him. One even went so far as to say she hopes he beats Kitajima because he’s such a nice guy. And I watched Hansen’s interview after he lost the 200 to Spann and Shanteau, and he had nothing but great things to say about them, especially Spann, who called a “stud” and said he would represent the US very well. He said he trains with Spann and Shanteau everday and has done his best to teach them everything he knows. He also said he would do everything he could in the next few weeks to prepare them to race and beat Kitajima. Sounds like a stand-up guy to me.

by bassale47 on Jul 7, 2008 1:53 PM CDT up 0 recs

i just think...

...he’s a diva, and like Phelps, thinks he’s better than the average person. That’s not to say that he’s a jerk to his teammates, but he feels like he is owed whatever he gets. I hear Peirsol is one of the few nice Olympians there

by vy til i die on Jul 7, 2008 6:01 PM CDT up 0 recs

Being able to not only qualify...

...but be a favorite for Gold in 5 events is an extraordinary accomplishment and there can be no serious debate that he is obviously a much more balanced and impressive swimmer that Peirsol. There is every reason to think that if he focused on the backstroke or even just the backstroke and the fly (where I’m certainly going to be rooting for Crocker to finally win) he would certainly qualify and quite possibly be better than Aaron, whreas the latter might not qualify for any event other than the backstrokes.

I write that as someone who is not a particularly big fan of Phelps and a big fan of Piersol who is, needless to say, awsome and seems to be a really good guy. On balance, though, given how much Phelps does I think we have to conclude that he at the very least is good on a much broader field.

marshalld

by duras on Jul 9, 2008 7:18 PM CDT up 0 recs

Michael Phelps

Just needs a few beers in him.

Hes at least of age for this Olympics right?

by BoddickerIsClutch on Jul 7, 2008 1:55 PM CDT up 0 recs

First of all

Phelps doesn’t train at the TSC. He trains in Michigan.

As for him being a jerk, I don’t know him personally, and I try not to judge. I have heard people who know him say he is arrogant, but he is the greatest swimmer of all-time so…..

As for Hansen, I agree with bassale. I have met him, and got the impression he was a pretty good guy.

However, I would hesitate to call these guys divas. They will never be multi-millionairres, or even Iconically famous in this country except for the weeks surrounding the Olympics. They train 5-7 hours a day in arguably the most physically punishing sport on earth. Phelps had a 7,000 meter workout on Christmas day while I was opening presents with my daughter and drinking coffee. They might be a little arrogant, but they have earned great success in a sport that doesn’t payout like football or basketball.

Anyway, it was a great meet for the horns; current, past, and future. Go get em in Beijing! Hook ‘em!

"A lot of people look for the easy way to do anything, in swimming there is no easy way." - Eddie Reese

by SwimTexas on Jul 7, 2008 11:25 PM CDT 0 recs

Phelps trains in Michigan with Club Wolverine

... but he’s raced at TSC lots of times. Anyone who has worked there regularly in recent years probably has met the guy.

But I agree about the “diva” label. These guys essentially give up their entire lives for swimming. Their own families take a back seat to it most of the time. Some people see it as “arrogance” that they don’t have time for much else, including socializing with every fan at a swim meet. I don’t.

And Phelps being “the greatest swimmer of all time” doesn’t give him reason to act like a jerk. This is why a lot of people can’t stand Gary Hall, Jr. His ego gets in the way. Any time another swimmer makes a comment about it not being possible for one person to win 8 golds in a single Olympics, he acts like he’s been personally wounded and makes a big show of hanging newspaper clippings in his locker, etc. Come on, dude. You don’t have to go out like that. Just keep your mouth shut and swim. The rest will take care of itself.

As for Hansen, I don’t know what he supposedly did or said to your girlfriend to make her think he’s a jerk or a diva, but every indication I’ve ever seen is that he’s one of the best representatives of UT, Longhorn Aquatics, and USA Swimming. The dude has 50 Japanese reporters in his face, all ribbing him about losing in the 200 and not getting to race their idol, Kosuke Kitajima, in the Olympics, and all he can talk about is how great the two guys who just beat him are and how he’s willing to do whatever is necessary to help them win in Beijing. That says a lot to me about his character.

by bassale47 on Jul 8, 2008 6:54 AM CDT up 0 recs

Phelps does pick up a few million a year and in this...

...respect get far more remuniration than most other swimmers. The wall posting and sensitivity are tacky but he is nowhere near as obnoxious as Hall who is not nearly as versatile or accomplished a swimmer.

Generally when peope are the best at the world at what they do one cannot expect them to be cool guys (or gals). Great if they are but we can appreciate what they do without that.

marshalld

by duras on Jul 9, 2008 7:09 PM CDT up 0 recs

Agreed

I’m at UT and I know a lot of college athletes both at UT and other D1 schools that I played against and went to school with throughout high school. One thing my friends have noticed is that many college athletes’ social skills and personalities aren’t the best or most humble. While this doesn’t give them the right to be arrogant assholes, people have to remember that most college athletes and esspecially olympic athletes have spent their entire lives training for their sport. During Sr. year of high school while I was slacking off and going to keggers, the athletes that were good enough to play college or pro sports were in the gym or competing in summer tournaments. At UT, for the most part the athletes live in their own little bubble of athletes, because those are the people they can relate to. I imagine that olympic athletes are more secluded considering the amount of training they have put in. I would have to just assume that guys like Phelps haven’t had humility training, cause thats not an event that will get you a gold medal.

by tvr'11 on Jul 10, 2008 1:29 PM CDT up 0 recs